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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22972450">Broken Memories</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/GarnetAngel21/pseuds/GarnetAngel21'>GarnetAngel21</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Final Fantasy VII</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst and Feels, Angst and Tragedy, Other</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-03-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-03-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-01 14:53:36</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,683</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22972450</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/GarnetAngel21/pseuds/GarnetAngel21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>There was a connection between them that could not easily be explained, but the truth was far worse.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>9</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Broken Memories</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>A/N: This is an AU fanfic, where Vincent is Sephiroth's biological father. I hope I've kept them in character. Any reviews are appreciated.<br/>Disclaimer : I own nothing.</p><p>An ominous grey sky, filled with heavy clouds, looked over a battlefield as they released their liquid weight onto the people that stood below. It was an oddly morose tone, despite the fact that the people below had succeeded in defeating a great evil. The rain ran down their wounded, exhausted bodies as they gathered close to each other and offered compliments.</p><p>"We did it, guys. It was a close call, but the good guys win again!" a young woman with short hair said, brightly. Another young woman with long black hair nodded. Her fighter's gloves were shredded, revealing bruised and bloodied fists but it didn't bother the woman. She had been through a lot worse. </p><p>A muscular man with tanned skin beamed at them while a middle aged man with blonde hair offered a thumbs up. They were both worn out, but would never verbally state so. A wolf with red fur sat patiently on the ground, his sharp eyes watching everyone and their surroundings. It was always better to exercise caution, even if a battle had been won. The hound doubted there would be any extra enemies to fight, but it was usually when people were comfortable that enemies would strike. He was not the only one who was cautious. </p><p>A few feet away from the group stood two men. One was young with blue eyes and spiky blond hair. The other was a man who appeared to be in his late twenties, although he was much older than that, and he had a red coat that matched his piercing eyes. Both men's eyes were observing the corpse that lay at their feet. The corpse belonged to their enemy, whom they had defeated and by doing so they had saved the world. However, a lingering sense of hollowness seemed to radiate from both men. </p><p>"I hated him, you know. I still hate him. He killed my best friend, he killed Aerith and he wanted to kill me. However, looking at his dead body... I feel so empty." The blond man frowned. "We saved the world, Vincent. We killed the villain. Why doesn't it feel like a victory?<br/>" <br/>Vincent placed a gloved hand on the young man's shoulder. "It's not always so black and white, Cloud. Sephiroth was a terrible man and he did awful things. However, you knew him before all of that. You saw a part of him that was good, so, despite all that he's done you are still able to see that part of him. I think, in a way, you even feel a kinship towards him. You were both lied to and used as tools. It's human to empathize, even if it seems misplaced."</p><p>Cloud nodded in understanding."It's just a bit messed up, I guess. That I'm not as happy as I thought I'd be when I avenged the deaths of my friends." </p><p>"Revenge isn't all it's cut out to be." Vincent sighed. "When you were busy fighting you were filled with anger, but now that it's over your mind is clear. You stopped him from destroying the world and you avenged your friends, but it won't bring them back. That's why it feels dull."</p><p>Cloud glared at the corpse before he turned to Vincent." Please don't tell anyone about this conversation. I don't think they'd appreciate my feelings, they've lost far more than I have. It would be... Insensitive if they knew what I was thinking. "</p><p>Vincent was about to retort that if they were truly his friends they would understand, but he merely nodded. He watched as Cloud walked towards the group and they all took turns embracing him. </p><p>" Vincent! We're going to head to Tifa's home now. Are you coming with us?" Cloud yelled. </p><p>Vincent looked at him, a slight frown on his face. In truth, he really wanted to join them but he had a lot of thoughts plaguing his mind. There were too many questions about the events that had led up to him being found in that coffin that required answers. Shinra was no longer in his way, so it would be better to seek those answers sooner should they rise from the ashes and attempt to destroy any evidence of their wrongdoings. </p><p>Cloud was able to decipher his response from the silence and he nodded in understanding. "We'll wait for you, then. You can come back to us anytime you like." <br/>They all headed towards the airship they had arrived in and it wasn't long before Vincent heard its engines rumbling. He saw it ascend and then vanish into the cloudy sky. He was alone again, albeit the corpse at his feet. He stared at the man and frowned. He looked a lot like his mother. </p><p>Vincent couldn't find it in his heart to merely leave Lucrecia's son lying on the ground, in the rain. It felt... Wrong. He placed one of his explosive bullets into his gun, Cerberus, and fired it into the ground. A hole had formed and Vincent picked up Sephiroth gently and started walking towards the hole. He placed the man inside it and frowned. Sephiroth's skin was pale, his lips were blue and he bore the expression of a sad child. It was befitting, in a way, Vincent thought. What had Sephiroth been, except for a misguided and lonely child who had been weaponized? </p><p>He began to pick up clumps of the dirt and threw it over the man's corpse. He continued until he was completely buried and then his head began to spin. He breathed heavily as his head throbbed and spun. He, too, was exhausted from the battle and it seemed his body was retaliating. Vincent tried to move, but his body refused and he ended up collapsing next to Sephiroth's grave. His eyelids felt heavy and it wasn't long before sleep claimed him. </p><p>xxx</p><p>Thirty years ago.... </p><p>Sephiroth was tired. He had spent most of the day training to use his powers against the doctor's robots and he had succeeded in eliminating all of them. That, and the fact that the president of Shinra had personally come to see him, had placed the doctor in a good mood and he had allowed Sephiroth to have the rest of the day to himself. It was a rare opportunity, so instead of resting the boy decided to explore his home.</p><p>Sephiroth had never been allowed to venture very far. He was only allowed to wander the lab, to his living quarters and sometimes he was allowed outside if the doctor wanted to run tests in a different environment. One area he was forbidden to enter was the basement, although the doctor has never given a true reason. It had piqued the boy's curiosity before, but he had never gone near it due to fear and never having the time. <br/>Now, however, the doctor wasn't there and he had all the time he needed. The silver-haired boy grinned and ran to the basement door. </p><p>He pushed it open and began exploring. It wasn't as interesting as he had hoped, it appeared that the basement was nothing more than the doctor's special hoarding site as it only contained old equipment and books. He was about to return when an odd door caught his attention. The door appeared to be dented, but it seemed as if it had been kicked from the inside. Had someone been trapped in there? Sephiroth curled his mouth in disgust. He was young, but he understood the doctor was a cruel man and often liked to imprison his subjects. On the few occasions he had tried to help them, the  doctor had punished him severely. He still felt horrible whenever he heard them cry, though, but he didn't help them.</p><p>The boy's curiosity trumped his fear and he opened the door with ease. Had the person not known it was open or were they afraid too? He peered into the room and gasped as he saw three coffins laying in the room. He opened the first two and saw that they contained corpses that were well preserved, but the third coffin was different. It had a lock on it. Sephiroth gulped nervously. Why would the doctor need to lock a corpse away? Why did the lock look damaged? He knew it was risky, but he wanted to see what was so dangerous within the third coffin. The lock was already damaged so it was easy to open. He slowly opened the coffin and prepared himself. </p><p>However, no beast leapt out at him. All that was laying in the coffin was a man with long black hair, wearing strange red clothes. However, the man didn't appear to be a corpse. His skin was pale, but still slightly peachy. Sephiroth placed his fingers on the man's neck and he felt a pulse. As he pulled his hand away, it was suddenly grabbed by a golden gauntlet and he gasped. The man sat up, his red eyes glowing in the dimly lit room and he stared at him. However, Sephiroth detected no malicious intent from the man. The man whispered one word, "Lucrecia..." </p><p>Sephiroth's eyes widened. That was his mother's name. However, before he could ask the man any questions, the sound of two gunshots echoed in the room. The man fell back into the coffin and hissed in pain. </p><p>Sephiroth turned to see the doctor standing behind him, cruel eyes glowing with sadistic glee. "Why does he know mother's name?" Sephiroth asked, bravely. </p><p>The doctor walked towards him and pulled him by his hair. "I told you not to come down here." </p><p>"Why are you hiding this man? Why does he know mother? Who is he?" Sephiroth squirmed and demanded. </p><p>The doctor's mouth curled into a snarl and he kicked the boy hard in the ribs. "He is an irrelevant relic of the past, much like your mother. Now, as you know, you disobeyed my orders and that is unacceptable. I hope you're prepared, boy."</p><p>Due to the horrific nature of his punishment, Sephiroth forgot about the man in the basement who knew his mother. </p><p>xxx<br/>Present day... Shinra Mansion </p><p>Vincent had avoided the old, decrepit house for as long as he had been awake. He had no desire to return to it, but it seemed fate had other plans for him. A faction of Shinra, long forgotten and unknown even to Rufus himself, had risen from the ashes and were intent on destroying the world. Again, they were products of Shinra's vile human experimentation and were trying to punish the outside world for their suffering. Vincent glared as he saw the Shinra insignia on a wall as he made his way into the house.</p><p>It had been years since he had stepped foot into that mansion, but it still looked the same albeit covered in dust and in serious need of repairs. He looked around and his mouth curled in disgust as he saw a picture of Dr Hojo standing next to Lucretia, a plaque of some importance held between them. Chaos stirred within him and he sighed, calming himself. He had to remain focused. He was only there to gather information on Deepground. </p><p>Eventually, he found his way to Hojo and Lucretia's old lab and he felt his throat constrict. Every part of his body had no desire to explore the place, his previous prison, further. He hated that place for it not only held awful memories, but it also held good ones that he would rather have forgotten. However, Vincent urged himself to enter the lab despite the bile rising in his throat and he walked over to one of the computer terminals. Reeve had given him a drive that had a decryption key that could access any locked terminals, so he inserted it into the terminal as he turned it on. <br/>He transferred most of Hojo's findings onto the drive, but he had no desire to read it.<br/> It was then that he accessed Lucrecia's records and saw his name. He didn't think much of it as he read through her reports and findings as she tried to keep him alive. He could never hate her, but he wished she had let him die the day Hojo had shot him. It would have spared him the pain of all that torture and having to fight all over again. He frowned as he saw the personal notes she had attached to his file, it was mostly apologies.</p><p>He suddenly became aware of a presence behind him and he turned around, Cerberus ready within his hand. A small figure ran past one of the computer terminals and Vincent immediately ran after it. Was it a Deepground agent? A monster that had found its way into the mansion? He ran after it and looked around. Where was it going?</p><p> It was then that he realized the figure seemed to be heading down towards the basement. He glared at the door that led to the basement as it stood halfway open. He saw the figure move within the dim light and he tried to shoot it, but it dodged. </p><p>Vincent ran after it and saw that it had gone into one of the rooms. His red eyes widened as he saw the familiar damaged door and he peered carefully inside the room. The small figure was crouched beside his old coffin and it seemed to be looking inside. "What are you doing here? Who are you?" He said as he held his gun ready. </p><p>The figure did not answer and it was then that he was able to see its true appearance. It appeared to be a child, dressed in a grey shorts and sweater. The child did not look up at him, but kept staring at the coffin. <br/>"What are you looking at, kid? Who are you? Why are you here?" </p><p>He reached out to touch the child, but it leaped away and vanished into the shadows of the room. Vincent could tell it was gone as he no longer sensed its presence. Had it been an apparition? Perhaps another victim of Hojo's awful experiments and its soul had been trapped to wander the mansion? He frowned. He knew exactly what it was like to be trapped within that horrid place. He shuddered as he remembered the times he had been left awake within that coffin, cold and hungry but unable to die due to the entity that dwelled within him. </p><p>He crouched down and stared at his old coffin as he tried to figure out what the child had been looking at. There didn't appear to be anything out of the ordinary, although some of the lining had been torn apart by rats most likely. The glint of something small caught his eye, it had come from one of the torn seams in the coffin. He moved the cotton aside and a small drive was revealed. He stared at it, curiously. It had been sewn into the lining, but for what purpose? What did it contain? </p><p>"It must be important if they went to such lengths to hide it." He said, to himself and he made his way back to the lab. He inserted the drive and saw that it only contained one file. His eyes widened as he saw the file was labeled "For Vincent." While his heart was filled with dread, his mind was overflowing with curiosity. He clicked on the file and a video recording began to play.</p><p> On the screen, her face exhausted and filled with sadness, was Lucrecia. </p><p>"Vincent, I'm so sorry. I can't stay here anymore and watch over you. I'm so tired, Vincent. The baby was born yesterday, it's a little boy. I've named him Sephiroth. He's so small and cute, he has silver hair due to the injections he was given before his birth." Her voice began to crack." I'm afraid, Vincent. I've been having these awful visions... I think they're premonitions about what my child will become. I want to take him with me, far away from here but I can't. They've already taken him away... I'm sorry, I can't stay here. I'm so sorry. You must think I'm the worst person in the world and I really am. What mother leaves their child... " She began to sob and it caused his heart to ache." Before I go, I must tell you the truth. Hojo and I never conceived him... Sephiroth's father is actually... You. I know you might not believe me, I wasn't sure about it either, but I have uploaded the real paternity results on terminal three. I'm sorry you never got to know the truth and I'm sorry that I've been nothing but selfish. I hope you can forgive me one day... Goodbye, Vincent. " The video ended and Vincent could only stare at the blank screen. </p><p>Sephiroth... Was his son? No... It couldn't be. Lucretia had to have made a mistake, perhaps the stressful nature of his birth had made her delusional? He immediately went to terminal three and used the decryption key to unlock it. He found a file marked "Sephiroth" and began reading through it. It had been mostly Lucretia's notes on how Sephiroth had been developing, but he finally found the page he was looking for. She had taken a sample of his blood and compared it to the DNA of the baby and it had been a 99% match. Vincent felt sick to his stomach and his throat constricted while his heart beat loudly within his chest. He could feel himself trembling and he sank to the ground. Sephiroth was actually his son. His own son... He had helped murder his own son.</p><p>He wanted to scream in despair, but no sound left his mouth. It was all too much for him to take and he could feel Chaos thrashing to be released within the deep recesses of his mind. His head throbbed and his eyes began to glow, but his mind was in such a state of despair and disbelief that he could barely fight off Chaos' influence. He became aware of a presence and looked up to see the child from earlier. In the bright lights of the lab, he could see it was a little boy of about eleven years of age. The boy frowned at him and crouched down next to him. </p><p>The boy reached out his hand and began to pet Vincent's hair softly, as a mother would do to comfort her child. Chaos' presence began to vanish as he started to slowly calm down. He was able to see right through the boy's form and his touch felt like air instead of a physical hand, but it still provided comfort. He sat up slightly and looked into the boy's voice and felt himself tremble. The boy looked exactly like Sephiroth, albeit far younger. However, his eyes and hair color were exactly the same. </p><p>"Sephiroth...?" He asked and the boy nodded. Tears began to run down Vincent's face as he stared at the apparition of the villain that he had helped to kill, the villain that had actually been his son. "Sephiroth... I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I never knew. If I knew, I would've tried to help you, but I..." </p><p>Sephiroth stared at the man and shook his head. They both knew that there was nothing they could do to change the past and that it was futile to think about it. However, it still broke Vincent's heart as he stared at the apparition before him. How he wished he could have shot Hojo first! Perhaps then he and Lucrecia could have escaped and raised their son far away from everything. Sephiroth frowned and hugged the distraught man tightly. It didn't feel like an actual hug as the boy had no physical form, but Vincent hugged him back anyway. They stayed in that position for a few minutes, Vincent's mind lost in chaotic thought, until Sephiroth pulled back. </p><p>The boy stared at him solemnly and Vincent knew what he was trying to say. He had to leave. Sephiroth was no longer part of the living world, but he had returned to guide his father to the truth. He had accomplished that so he was to return to the spirit world again. Vincent didn't want him to go, he had so much to ask and tell the boy, but he knew it was not meant to be. Fate had decided to curse him by not only taking away the love of his life, but his own child as well. The boy offered him a heartfelt smile and waved at him goodbye before he turned around and vanished into thin air. </p><p>Vincent stared at the spot where he had stood and felt his heart ache all over again. His phone buzzed and he saw that it was a text from Reeve, asking if he had found anything. The man stood up and clutched the drive that he had found. There was no time to grieve as the world was in danger yet again, but it didn't soothe the pain radiating through him. The former Turk wiped his eyes and glared at the Shinra insignia that appeared on the lab walls. Oh, how he loathed that damn thing!</p><p> He knew that it would be a long fight ahead and that it would be difficult, but if he succeeded he knew what he was going to do. Once everything was over, he would not only visit Lucrecia but he would visit Sephiroth's grave as well. </p><p>He had lost everything so many years ago, more than he had realized, but there was no returning to the past and he knew he had to make peace with that. He would grieve for them, for as long as he lived, but for now he would use their memories and do what he needed to do. He would fight.</p>
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